


Of Heart Strings and Guardians

by magicalladybuglife



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: ALL THE FLUFF, DJWifi, F/F, F/M, Fluffy, Julerose - Freeform, Lukanette, M/M, Romantic Fluff, Steady relationships, Tooth Rotting Fluff, adrigami, be patient with me, not canon, pieces of canon fandom scattered like glitter throughout, rated T just for the fluff, that is what im here for
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-02-19
Updated: 2020-02-19
Packaged: 2021-02-28 05:28:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,402
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22798579
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/magicalladybuglife/pseuds/magicalladybuglife
Summary: After several months of perpetual bliss dating the girl of his dreams, Luka stumbles across a secret that he can't believe he didn't see before. Yet with Hawkmoth still raging and almost falling victim to an akuma himself, the aspiring rockstar finds himself in a pickle. What to do? Paranoia threatens his peace and makes his heart strings quiver; especially because after the battle of the miraculous, Luka can no longer don the snake miraculous to be by her side when she needs him most. How is he supposed to stand on the sidelines if he feels like he's a threat to the guardian of the miraculous?Or alternatively: The one where Luka and Marinette learn how to cultivate a healthy relationship despite hardships and crazy supervillians.
Relationships: Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Kagami Tsurugi, Alya Césaire/Nino Lahiffe, Juleka Couffaine/Rose Lavillant, Luka Couffaine/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug
Comments: 3
Kudos: 28





	Of Heart Strings and Guardians

Snow swirled against the window panes of the Dupain-Cheng’s bakery apartment. The flickering holiday lights outside danced through the glass and freckled Marinette’s face with a magical glow, causing a swell of emotion to roar through Luka’s heart. The rise and fall of her deep sleeping breaths echoed in his ears. Her back lay flush against his chest while her head hung cradled in the crook of his neck. His arms were loosely held around her middle and his cheek lay against the top of her midnight head of hair. He wished he could capture this moment in time and remember every single detail forever.

The plan had been to have a movie night while waiting for Marinette’s parents to close up the bakery so they could all decorate for the holidays. Marinette had invited him to come because it was a special occasion for them; the first December day that landed on a Saturday night was set aside for decorating, food, and memories. Luka hadn’t known exactly what all of that entailed, but he had been looking forward to it for weeks. However, that movie night plan had failed, turning into cuddling with a side of napping. Luka had switched off the TV several minutes ago, relishing in the quiet stillness of this wintertime moment. Seldom, if any time at all, did Luka have refreshing moments of silence. In his experience, silence sometimes brought up old memories that were often laced with sadness, regret, or anger. That was one of the reasons he had grown up playing music on anything he could get his hands on; because music could turn away the pain and the negative feelings or at least buoy the listener into a safety haven for a moment. Music was fulfilling, beautiful and safe. Silence was sometimes scary. But in this moment, silence was peaceful…it was gentle. It wrapped him up in a warm mental blanket and encouraged him to pay attention to the tiniest of details…her breathing, the smell of the lavender shampoo that lingered in her hair, the constant drumming of her heart mere inches away from his own. This kind of silence was refreshing and intoxicating.

“I was wondering how long she would last.” Sabine chuckled quietly while putting her cellphone into her pocket, startling Luka from his thoughts. Marinette’s flour dusted mother smiled down at him with soft eyes. A blush crept up his neck and danced across his cheeks. How long had she been standing there?

“Mrs. Dupain-Cheng! I’m ready to start decorating whenever you-” Luka started to slowly rise and shift Marinette off of his chest.

“Oh nonsense, dear.” Sabine quietly interrupted him, wordlessly encouraging him to sit back down again and stay put. “Tom is still wrapping up; you can fit in an extra few moments. I know I would.” The petite woman winked at him cheekily and bustled into the kitchen. He heard her preheating the oven and pull items out of the fridge and onto the counter.

“I’ve been really looking forward to this evening. Thank you for letting me impose on your special family tradition this year.” The aspiring Rockstar gratefully expressed out loud, smiling down at his sleeping girlfriend.

“It’s about time Marinette invited you over. I was starting to get a little worried I’d be the one who’d have to invite you over.” Sabine laughed as she started to turn on all the house lights. “We’re happy you could make it. Normally we would have closed early for our special first December Saturday but we got an order from the Mayor’s daughter three hours before the time we wanted to close. Then on top of that we had a mishap with a bag of flour…Anyway, I hope you don’t mind the late dinner and everything.”

“I don’t mind at all, ma’am. Is there anything I can do to help?” Luka asked as he slowly started to shift Marinette onto the couch. How this girl could sleep like a rock was a mystery to him. He was an extremely light sleeper. He brushed her bangs aside after he managed to escape from underneath her and left a featherlight kiss on her cheek before rising.

“You’re welcome to help set the table. I premade Marinette’s favorite casserole for dinner so it should only take about thirty to forty minutes to bake, dinner prep will be a cinch.” Sabine told him as she carefully placed the dish pan into the oven.

Luka retrieved the plates and cups from their designated cupboard and started to set the table for the four of them.

“Remind me again how long you two have been officially dating?” Sabine inquired innocently.

“7 months tomorrow.” Came the happy reply. A warm smile spread across Luka’s face.

“Well I’ll be baked in a pie, that long already?” A booming voice cheerily echoed through the room. Tom finished taking his shoes off by the door and hung up his work apron on the rack. “And here I thought we’d have to release her to a nunnery but a few months ago.”

“Daaaaaddddd!!” Marinette groggily reproached, sitting up to rub the sleep out of her eyes.

“Pumpkin! Did you seriously fall asleep with a guest over?” Tom faked an appalled demeanor and wiped imaginary tears. “I’m sorry Luka, I just don’t know if there’s hope for her.”

Marinette’s face turned bright blushing red as she tried to defend her honor to the large teddy bear man. Marinette had plenty of reasons to be exhausted, her last year of lycée was almost over and she was swamped with class president responsibilities, homework, applying for universities and doing that special internship assessment for the Gabriel line. Luka was proud of her accomplishments and head on her shoulders; he wasn’t sure he could run a jam-packed schedule like hers and not disappear into insanity.

“Alright you two, settle down. Let’s get dinner started with our appitzer salads at least while we wait for the casserole to finish baking.” Sabine smiled fondly as she ushered everyone to the table. Marinette had shared some of her mother’s famous Asian inspired chopped salad before, but having it fresh in front of him made Luka realize just how hungry he actually was.

“So, Luka, what are you up to these days? I understand you’ve been working odd jobs to help you save up to attend your top music uni of choice, is that correct?” Tom asked as he heaped the perfect appetizer amount of salad onto his plate in one go.

“That is correct, although I really just have one job now. A few years ago, I used to run deliveries for a few different businesses but I decided I liked the in-store settings much more. I work as a barista at that local coffee shop, well more like mini café, near the Seine most days and sometimes in the evenings I return to work as a live musician.” Luka responded cheerfully. He loved his job and wouldn’t change it for the world at the moment, even if some of the mornings are ungodly too early at times. The owners made him feel like family, and compensated him for his mini performances on top of his regular pay. Not only did he get to do what he loved in public more than once a week, but he also was saving up perfectly to be able to attend his choice university in less than a year.

“Ooh, we’ve been meaning to check out that little café one of these days.” Sabine chimed in beaming. “It’s always hard as a business owner to check out new places, but maybe we’ll just have to close early on a night you’re performing so we get to experience both.”

“Mom you don’t need to terrorize my boyfriend in all areas of his life.” Marinette deadpanned. Luka chuckled at her sincerity and rising blush.

“It’s not terrorizing if we let him know we’re crashing the party ahead of time.” Tom joked as he jabbed at her with his fork full of salad.

“I appreciate your thoughtfulness, Marinette. In all honesty though, I would love to see you all one of these days,” Luka admitted, “It’s always refreshing to see a familiar face when I perform.”

Marinette squeaked a bit in embarrassment but smiled as he slid his hand into hers under the table. She squeezed his hand lovingly then let go to adjust her napkin on the table. Luka knew she had been a little nervous to be in front of her parents with a boyfriend, so he respected her space. Not to mention, he wanted to give Tom and Sabine a good first impression too.

Dinner carried on with pleasant conversation, and lots of meaningful laughter. The dinner table was so vibrant and joyous at the Dupain-Cheng’s home. Luka couldn’t remember the last time he, Jules, and his mother sat down for a real meal like this. This was something he wanted to continue in his own home one day. Vibrance instead of emptiness. He loved his sister and mother dearly, but they all responded to the past so differently and though the houseboat rocked with music and noise constantly, it sometimes was the loneliest place to be. Luka had turned his grief and other negativities about his past into something cathartic and useful. He researched and practiced psychological care and meditation so that he could be the safety net of calm and peace for his family and friends. He had learned how to create a Zen atmosphere, but it didn’t mean he appreciated and loved the boisterous beauty of a happy home. Not to mention, the meal was absolutely delicious and he was quite certain that he was utterly stuffed.

With dinner wrapping up, Sabine shooed away the young adults to get the holiday decorations out of the storage closet while the parents cleaned up after dinner. Marinette and Luka scurried down the stairs to the storage room on the bottom floor behind the stairwell, nestled between the front store and the doors to the bakery.

“What do you think of my little family so far? My dad can be a little much sometimes…” Marinette chuckled as she shifted a few boxes out of her path, searching for the correct treasure for the rest of their evening.

In response he gently tugged her waist toward him and kissed her. Marinette melted into a puddle in his arms as his right hand came up to rest behind her neck to pull her closer. After a mesmerizing moment, he stopped just long enough to rest his forehead against hers and whisper back, “I’m in love with every moment with you.”

“You’re a tease.” She breathed back dreamily pushing him half-heartedly away as she made an attempt to return to her search for the Christmas boxes.

“Who’s madly in love with his girlfriend.” He teased pulling her back into him for a single swift kiss. “Are you going to find those boxes or what?”

“Not if you can’t stop making me swoon where I stand. Stop snogging me for at least a half second or I’ll lose my resolve.” She joked pushing him aside.

“Oh, could this be the box?” He asked innocently coming up behind her and reaching around her middle to grab a box in front of her. He felt her breath hitch when her back rested perfectly against his chest and her arms came down to rest on top of his. “Oh no, this says Easter, my bad.”

“Luka Couffanie! I swear by all things good in this world, you will be the death of me!” Marinette huffed as he put the box down and wrapped his arms around her in a tight hug.

“Sorry, I’m just in love with my girlfriend today.” Luka said quietly.

“Well, I’m happy for you.” Marinette giggled, squishing her body around to face him. “At least one of us chooses to love our significant other every day.” She teased him with a wink and stood up on her tiptoes to capture his lips with her own. It was Luka’s turn to melt. She was simply the cutest, kindest and most understanding girlfriend he had ever had. Something about his emerging adulthood made him want to hang onto this type of relationship with everything he could muster…hang onto her with everything he had. He chased after her lips when she started to retreat, causing her to giggle. She obliged for a half a second longer until she broke away and covered his lips with her hand.”

“As much as I would love to continue, I do not want my parents to come looking for us during these…uh…moments, if you don’t mind. We were sent to find the decorations.” Marinette’s cheeks were dusted pink with an extra bit of light in her eyes. His heart sang for her.

“As you wish.” He replied simply, pressing his lips to the palm draped across his mouth before releasing her.

Marinette giggled warmly and turned away finding the three boxes of decorations and large bag holding the fake Christmas tree. The pair took it all upstairs and into the living room just as Tom and Sabine finished washing the dinnerware. Sabine turned on some holiday music and Tom started opening all the boxes to decide what to start with first. The tree became the starting point, so everyone began fluffing out the fake tree branches to put on their cute little 4ft tree. Tom explained the story of how they switched to a fake tree after years of trying to make a tradition with their family to go pick out a fresh tree didn’t stick. They talked and joked about old memories around the holidays for their family; even going onto explaining the different stories behind the several tree decorations. Somehow the reminiscing turned into a battle between Tom and Marinette to remember the most holiday time fails in the bakery.

Luka chuckled to himself as Marinette and her father teased each other, her mother chiming in every once in a while. What a beautiful sight it was to see a complete family unit, all in love, all happy. Maybe one day this will be his future…with his beautiful, feisty wife and future…children? His heart swelled with hope as his eyes locked on her face. A boy could dream, couldn’t he?

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - -

**Author's Note:**

> Hi fellow Lukanette shippers! (I assume because why else would you be here) I hope you enjoy this first chapter! I've been playing around with this story in my head for months and started writing it down last year but I finally got around to getting a first chapter completed in the snowy weather because I'm an absolute sucker for holiday romances... ANYWAY! I'm not sure how many chapters this will be nor what exactly my posting timeline will be so please be patient with me. In the meantime there are several amazing Lukanette oneshots for Lukanette February - my favorite right now is "Something Just Like This - Lukanette February 2020" by Quickspinner so enjoy all the other beautiful works of art while waiting around for me if you want ;)
> 
> THANKS for reading and enjoying ship building with me. I'm a romantic sucker, call me out. ;)
> 
> Oh also, if you search my other fan fiction I wrote because of this one, please note I started and finished it before canon season 3 was complete so a lot of Luka/Viperion facts are invalid so read it with a grain of salt lol. I still like what I did with it, but it's kinda old news lol. So here's me catching up with the jones's.


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